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Friday, February 8, 2013

Is There a Move in Your Second Half?

It’s official; we’re moving
to Carmel.

We might be crazy to add the
stress of a cross-country move on top of all the other changes of the past
several months, but as I sit here watching it snow (again) in Minnesota, I know we’re doing the right
thing.

OG and I have been vacationing
in Carmel (on the central California
coast two hours south of San Francisco)
for the past five years. About a year and a half ago, we splurged and bought a
vacation condo in a wonderful location with a view of the mountains and only a
few blocks from the beach, thinking it would be the perfect getaway for the
five years before I retired. If you follow this blog, you know fate threw a
monkey wrench into my retirement plans last summer, turning years into months,
and we began to evaluate every aspect of our Second Half. What exactly do we
want to do with our time, and where do we want to do it?

For years, the MontereyPeninsula has drawn me like a magnet. For
a lifelong Midwesterner (and flatlander), the combination of sea, rocky
shoreline, sandy beaches, and mountains is magical. I marvel at the softness of
the air and the unfamiliar vegetation. I even love the fog. We rarely have fog
in the plains, and when we do it’s thick, solid ground fog—nothing like the
mysterious floating fingers of coastal fog that glide above the highway and
through the pine-covered hills.

OG has always been a
winter-hater at heart, and in Minnesota
he’s housebound for several months a year except to shovel snow and run
essential errands. The first few weeks of retirement gave me a taste of what
that’s like, and I hated it, too. I want so much more for our Second Half. I
want to go for walks and work in the garden. I want OG to be able to play golf
and take sailing lessons if he chooses.

It’s scary to think of
leaving the familiarity of the place we’ve lived for twenty-three years, the
place we raised our daughter. OG worries about finding a new barber who will
cut his hair perfectly every time. We know we’ll never be able to replace our
wonderful dentist, and at our age that’s a serious concern! But there’s more to
life than barbers and dentists. With the demise of my job, we no longer have
any real ties to Minnesota.
Our daughter only comes home a couple of times a year, and we have no family
here. It’s time to suit ourselves and move on.

We began house hunting in Carmel last November and
settled on a house during our trip last week. We chose a modest ranch house in CarmelValley
a few miles inland from the coast with a glorious view of the mountains. The
house is in dismal condition, so fixing it up will be a several-month project. I’ll
post updates as we move along. Who ever said the Second Half would be dull?

I'm excited for the two of you. As much as you'll be missed, I completely understand why you're moving away from five months of yuck in MN. Looking forward to hearing about the further adventures of the Henderson's.

Moving can be stressful, but the end reward is so worth it. We moved from the DC area to southern VA where Calvin grew up. Winters are milder here with only dustings of snow. The milder temps mean we can spend more time outdoors and spring is here by mid-March when our magnolia trees bloom. Good luck to you. Thanks for sharing your journey.

Congratulations on finding a great place where you want to spend the wonders of retirement. Personally, I love and miss the Winters very much and would love for it to be cool and misty year round. But I'm in the minority there. My husband feels the same as I do. We are in Southern California just south of L.A. I often dream of returning to the East Coast where I grew up, but a little further North or to my roots in the lovely land of Ireland. I'm a dreamer and I hope to make my dreams come true. Congratulations again and Good Luck!!!

Being a California girl born and bred, I may be a bit biased, but you can't beat the West Coast for beautiful scenery and weather. I'm so excited for you. I'm also hoping we can actually meet face to face one of these days. Tahoe is about 5 1/2 hours from Carmel. Right now we have that snow you're trying to escape, but in the summer, it's spectacular up here in the mountains.

It's wonderful that you've found a place to retire that fulfills your dreams. I'm envious, especially now since I'm in the path of winter storm Nemo, lol! Enjoy your new home and the new direction in your life!

Congrats on finding a new home where you most want to be. I'm with you when it comes to winter. The older I get, the more I hate the snow. I don't mind the cold as much but risking life and limb to get to work on a daily basis for months on end grows old quickly.

We moved in 2011 -- I know what you mean about finding all the people you need to make life simple. I FINALLY found someone to cut my hair (only took a year or two), and we have discovered our new Breakfast Spot. Of course, the first place we found was Our Grocery Store and Our Liquor Store (conveniently located in the same place!)

Congratulations! Coming from windy cold Scotland/ and/ or even colder Minnesota, I can truly understand moving to Carmel. I have in-laws who did almost the same thing - they moved from Minnesota to Freemont California. The first holiday opportunity I was taken to was to Carmel as the place everyone really wants to live. That was about 15 years ago. I've not moved there, but I'm sure you'll have a fnatastic time!

About Me

Like so many of my fellow baby-boomers, I've found myself facing the challenge of an unexpected early retirement after a long career in business, and it's scary. After much research and soul-searching, I've decided to take the plunge full time into the world of publishing--my first love and second home for the past twenty years. I hope you'll join me on this journey of discovery and reinvention.